Why did you take out Lee Junghoo? Fans are so angry...You're going to get hit hard by 40 percent? Missed a chance to enter WC

Sep 14, 2025

San Francisco Giants fans are angry that Lee Jung-hoo missed the LA Dodgers match on the 14th (Korea time). ImagesYonhap News

"Can anyone explain why Lee Jung-hoo is out? "

Local fans in the U.S. who support the San Francisco Giants are firmly angry. It is hard to understand why Lee Jung-hoo, who has been hit hard recently, was put on the bench to the end. Fans criticized the club's decision to exclude Lee Jung-hoo from the game on social media.

Lee Jung-hoo finally missed the game against the Los Angeles Dodgers on the 14th (Korea time) at Oracle Park in San Francisco, California. San Francisco was able to increase its chances of fall baseball by beating the New York Mets, who have recently lost eight consecutive games, to third place in the National League wild card, but lost 7-13 to stay in fourth place, maintaining a 0.5-game gap.

San Francisco manager Bob Melvin used Luis Matos as a center fielder instead of Lee Jung-hoo, and as soon as San Francisco allowed the Dodgers to turn the tables, Matos played a disappointing defense, making home fans miss Lee Jung-hoo more.

The bases loaded with no outs in the top of the fifth inning with a 4-3 lead. Dodgers' Teoscar Hernandez's ball headed to right-center. Center fielder Matos chased the ball to the end and tried to catch a dive, but the ball fell back. In the meantime, two Dodgers runners scored and turned it over 4-5. In the aftermath, San Francisco lost its victory to the Dodgers by giving up six runs in the fifth inning alone.

San Francisco fans watched the footage and posted on social media, "'If it was after this, I would have caught Hernandez's double.'", "If it were after this, it would have been very easy to catch.", "Melvin had to use Lee Jung-hoo as center fielder, not Matos. Lee Jung-hoo would have caught that fly ball", "If it were Lee Jung-hoo and Drew Gilbert, they would have caught that ball. But why was the center fielder Matos?", "Why on earth is Lee Jung-hoo not in the game?"

Lee Jung-hoo, a popular player with the San Francisco Giants. They are responding to fans' requests for autographs. AFP Yonhap News

Lee Jung-hoo of the San Francisco Giants boasts a hot hitting sense approaching .400 in September. AP Yonhap News

San Francisco was likely to be eliminated from the fall baseball league, but recently, it has suddenly accumulated wins and is on the verge of entering the wild card. He has won 14 games (five losses) in the last 19 games. With 14 games left in the regular season, it is enough to sing miracles.

Lee Jung-hoo recently showed off his hot batting at bat, contributing greatly to San Francisco's rise. He hit 0.394 (13 hits in 33 times at bat) in September, approaching 400.

Lee Jung-hoo had only a batting average of 0.249 (86 hits in 345 times at bat) until the first half, which was his worst hit since his professional debut, but he recovered his self-esteem by raising his batting average to 0.303 (53 hits in 175 times at bat) in the second half.

His slugging power has also improved remarkably from last year to the extent that he recorded 30 doubles and 11 triples for the season. Lee is ranked second in the National League after Arizona Diamondbacks Corbin Carroll (16) in the triple category.

San Francisco fans are criticizing Melvin for not using Lee Jung-hoo as he was held back by the Dodgers in a golden opportunity to climb to third place in the wild card. There was no announcement from the club regarding the injury. It seems that Lee Jung-hoo was given a break in terms of player rotation, but fans' complaints have grown as they missed important games.